May 21, 2026
The Empire Club of Canada Presents
What’s Good for the Game? The Future Business of Sport in Canada
Chairman: Saurabh Popat, President, Board of Directors, Empire Club of Canada
Moderator
Christine Simpson, NHL Features Reporter for Prime Monday Night Hockey
Distinguished Guest Speakers
Laurence Applebaum, Chief Executive Officer, Golf Canada
The Honourable Neil Lumsden, Ontario’s Minister of Sport
Jacqueline Ryan, Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Olympic Foundation; Chief Brand & Commercial Officer, Canadian Olympic Committee
Head Table Guests
Bruno Suppa, Chief Executive Officer, BDO Canada
Welcome Address by Saurabh Popat, President, Board of Directors, Empire Club of Canada
Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for being here today. My name is Saurabh Popat. I’m the Chair of the Board of the Empire Club of Canada, and your host for today’s event.
To formally begin, I want to acknowledge that we are gathering on the Traditional and Treaty Lands of the Mississaugas of the Credit, and the homelands of the Anishinaabe, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat Peoples. I encourage you all to learn more about the Traditional Territory on which you work and live.
Now, today’s event would not be possible without the generous support of our incredible sponsors. The Empire Club is a nonprofit organization, and our sponsors generously support the club, and make these events possible and complimentary for our online viewers to attend. So, please join me in thanking our Lead Sponsor for today, BDO, thank you. We also deeply appreciate the ongoing support of our Lead Season Sponsors, Bruce Power, Hydro One, and National Bank Capital Markets. Thank you. And our VIP Reception Season Sponsors, Ellis Don, McKinsey & Company, the Ontario Road Builders Association, and Waste Connections of Canada. Thank you. And finally, thank you to our Media Partner, the Toronto Star, and our AV Partner, Bespoke Audio Visual.
If you have a question for our speakers, please scan the QR code found on your program or through the Q&A function, if you’re online. And for those of you online, if you require technical assistance, please use the chat feature.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, sport is a test. It demands strength, resilience, commitment, and consistency. And that holds true for all athletes from weekend warriors to Olympians. And right now in Canada, the business of sport also faces a test. National organizations are grappling with rising costs, and flat or uncertain government funding. They’re working through new expectations around governance, safety, and inclusion. These pressures force difficult choices. Organizations must decide how to sustain programs and support athletes at the same time. And they must adapt to survive.
Last fall, we were honoured to host Keith Pelley, CEO of Maple Leaf Sports, to discuss leadership and sports here at the Empire Club. He told us that if you’re not prepared to change, then you run the risk of falling behind in all facets of your business. Today, we hear from another great organization that is leading that change, Golf Canada. Golf Canada has significant reach, representing 6 million players, and 70 million rounds of golf played annually—and I would imagine an untold number of mulligans, and perhaps a few foul words too, but those are not good for golf etiquette.
Today, we’re excited to hear about the compelling vision for sport that Golf Canada has. Golf, like the test of sports, is an extremely humbling game. And similar to business, requires so much focus, attention, resilience, and commitment. And like in business, in the sport of golf, nothing is ever given, but always earned. Golf Canada has been focused on making golf more accessible, and driving the growth and popularity of golf more than ever. Our keynote speaker explained the growth this way: technological advancement, the shifting of lifestyles in the work week has really helped the participation side, and has the expansion of new formats for golf, like shorter formats and simulator golf. But above all, he noted that there are more women and more young people than ever before. That success also comes from the strategic innovation. Golf Canada isn’t afraid to use emerging technologies and adapt to shifting consumer behaviours to give an established sport new legs. So, today’s panel explores what that means for building financially resilient models across Canadian sport.
To get us into the swing of our formal program, I’m pleased to introduce Bruno Suppa, CEO of BDO Canada. Bruno leads a major professional services firm built on its own kind of athleticism, transforming complex problems into compelling results. BDO’s focus is doing more with its clients and communities. They are our Lead Sponsor today, and an elite sponsor of Golf Canada. They also support the RBC Canadian Open and the CPKC Women’s Open, as well as Canada’s Amateur Golf Championships. Please, welcome Bruno to the podium.
Opening Remarks by Bruno Suppa, Chief Executive Officer, BDO Canada
All right, thank you very much, Saurabh, and thank you to the Empire Club for hosting us. Welcome everyone to the roast of Laurence Applebaum. Wrong event, wrong event. You know, there’s this old saying in golf that you don’t know someone until you’ve played 18 holes with them. I’m not sure that’s entirely fair, because I’d imagine that many of us, including me, do not want to be judged by a game or a round of golf, especially a shot off the first tee. But I do think that there’s some truth in that, though. Golf, as Saurabh was mentioning, it reveals character. It asks for patience, it asks for discipline, resilience, humility, especially when the game reminds you that you’re not quite as good as you might’ve thought that you are. That one resonates big time. Laurence and I, you know, we played a bit of golf together. I know that we both at times could use a little bit of help with our game. But one thing’s clear, Laurence knows the business of golf, and the business of sport. I’ve seen this firsthand. I’ve learned a lot from him as a CEO, as a partner, and as someone who understands how to build the game beyond just the scorecard.
Today’s question is a pretty simple one. What’s good for the game? In golf, that means thinking beyond one round, beyond one player, or one tournament. It means asking what will keep the game healthy today, tomorrow, and for generations to come. But that question also reaches beyond golf. Sports brings us together. It creates pride, it creates belonging, and moments that we remember. But passion alone, passion alone is not enough. Passion is the fuel, but the business model is really the engine. And leadership is what keeps it moving in the right direction. That’s what makes Golf Canada such an important example for us here today.
Golf in Canada reaches millions of players, as Saurabh had mentioned, 70 million rounds a year. 70 million rounds a year. I think we account for maybe 50% of that. Those numbers are obviously very impressive, but the story is not just how many people play the game. The bigger story is how Golf Canada is opening the game. BDO Canada has been proud to serve as an elite sponsor of Golf Canada since 2022. For us, this partnership is not simply a sponsorship, it’s really an alignment of values. We’re proud to support the RBC Canadian Open, the CPKC Women’s Open, Canada’s National Amateur Championships, and one that really resonates with me is First Tee Canada. And this is an organization that’s helping young people access affordable, inclusive, and life-enhancing experiences through golf.
I’ve told this story before, you’ve heard me tell it. This to me came alive in a big way during the event at Oakdale. And Oakdale is very close to where my grandparents lived for decades. I’d often walk with my grandfather by the course, wondering what was going on in that, you know, the beautiful scenery, not really having access to it. And so, when seeing people from the neighbourhood on course and involved in that event from that community, it really warmed my heart. So, this organization is doing fantastic things.
A stat for you, since 2021, First Tee has reached more than 280,000 youth across the country. That really matters. It matters because growing the game is not just about creating more golfers, it’s about bringing more people in. And that’s what Laurence understands. He understands that leadership in sport is not just about running the organization, it’s about building an ecosystem. And we’re fortunate to be part of that ecosystem. He sees connections that others might miss, builds partnerships that last, and has helped position Golf Canada and is an example of how national sports organizations can be simultaneously ambitious, commercially thoughtful, and deeply committed to a public purpose.
So today, when we ask the question, what’s good for the game, we’re not only asking about golf, we’re asking what golf can teach us about building a stronger, more sustainable future for sport in this country. And with that, it’s my pleasure to introduce the man himself, my friend, Laurence Applebaum, CEO of Golf Canada, to the stage. Thank you.
Laurence Applebaum, Chief Executive Officer, Golf Canada
Well, thank you, thank you so much, Bruno. And we call BDO an elite partner of Golf Canada. And I think it’s pretty easy to see by the way Bruno speaks, and the passion, and the integrity, and everything about you, to be honest, Bruno, is so special. And so, we’re thrilled to have you on this journey of us in Golf Canada. I first have to say a big thank you to the Empire Club. This has been a couple years coming. And between Saurabh, and Kent, and Michael, we’re so thankful that you continue to press, and ask, and make this opportunity, this platform, available to sport. And we have so many people in this room that are part of this journey, that are part of this journey in sport, and specifically part of this journey in golf. So, I thank all of you for being here. But I do wanna give a shout out to my family over here at this table, and thank you all for being here. But in particular, my mother, who at 81 years is coming down downtown Toronto to see me speak, and she asks the same question that I’m sure all of you asked today. “Is this like a bar mitzvah?” It absolutely is.
So, I’ll first have you turn your attention to the screen for a video that our team put together to talk about what we’re gonna share today. Well, we’re here to talk about the future business of sport through the lens of golf. But I’m gonna take you back a couple weeks ago. I was taking my son Henry after school to his golf lesson, his golf clinic that was the nearby golf course. And as we drove down through our little town, we passed a high school. And there was about 15 or 20 kids waiting at the bus stop all together, but all deep into their phones. And I’m sure all of you have seen some of these scenarios play out in different scenarios, or places around where you live. These kids were together, but clearly, were alone. And it struck me as I drove on and dropped Henry off at the golf course, and saw him run with the golf clubs as big as his little body, he was laughing, and playing, and going to the putting green, and chipping, and having fun. And all these kids were engaged with something special. This one happened to be golf. But it really dawned on me the transformative power of sport. The ability to build connections, to grow community, and most importantly—and the Prime Minister talked about this a bit—that sport can be nation building.
So today, I’m gonna take you through that with a bit of a golf lens. I’m gonna talk about three things. The first I’m gonna talk about is, why is golf so great? And I know I have some converts and friendly faces in the audience already, but I’m gonna tell you about why golf is so great. The second thing I’m gonna share with you is about our momentum, and the growth of the game, where we are today, and where we think it’s headed. And third, I’m gonna share a little bit about how we achieved it. About the blueprint that we followed for golf, and make it an open and accessible invitation to sport for all of Canada and around the world.
So first, let me talk to you about what’s going on in this transformation of sport in golf. I’ve either played, or participated, or coached, or worked in almost every major sport. And I keep coming back to golf as the perfect game. It’s outdoors, for the most part. It’s physical, it’s active, it’s mental, it’s social, it’s community. For most of us it can be recreational, but it certainly can be competitive for a lot of us. It’s got this handicap system that any two people can play together at any level. What other sport can do that? And one of the things I heard it described as it’s a sense of euphoria. You hit a great shot, and there’s this euphoric recall. Didn’t matter that you had 89 swipes already, but that one that hit it right on the screws, and flew the way you wanted to, and landed the way you wanted to, is what brings you back to golf. And it can also be humbling. That’s all the gifts that golf gives. You can play from 6 to 86. It’s male, it’s female, it’s young, it’s old, it’s every diverse background. And it welcomes everyone to the game.
But the other thing I wanna share with you is it’s an economic juggernaut. The business of golf is about a $23 billion economic impact. Over 240,000 people are employed in the golf sector, and that is on top of—what is on top of that is about the 50,000 kids who trudge off to work a summer job at places like Weston Golf Club for the summer all around the 2,300 golf courses in our country. It’s an amazing employee resource. It’s also an incredible charitable fundraiser. You probably know your local hospital, association, charitable foundation. They run golf tournaments, and close to $400 million is raised through golf tournaments around the country. It’s an incredible initiative.
Well, let me talk to you a little bit about the growth and momentum in the game. So, if you look on this slide, you’ll see that in 2019, golf was sitting in a moment, core golfers were playing, it was a nice time in the game, and then it took off. Often, we’ll call it this COVID catalyst, or this moment when the game became something structural that allowed it to be in open spaces, safe outdoors, that took off. The changing dynamics of the work home environment and that hybrid necessity allowed this game to continue at double digit growth year-by-year. And all of a sudden, we started to see that since 2019, more than 50% of the rounds in the country have increased. And as Bruno mentioned, actually, and had a great comment about, we have 70 million rounds of golf are played in this country. So, at about a four-hour clip, it’s 280 million hours of golf being played in Canada. It is the most played sport, with the most amount of time that this game is being played.
And who’s playing? We’re having a bunch of different people that are playing in the game that now make up almost eight-and-a-half million people. We have those core golfers, the people who played before, who play more, a lot more. We have the new entrants to the game. Those who picked it up, athletes wanted to play more. New people, new kids, more women, more people from diverse backgrounds picking up the game. And it went from strength to strength. And one of the most amazing things about the game of golf right now is in the last year alone, more than a million people have picked up golf. It has changed the entire ecosystem of the game. We’ll come back to that in a second.
One of the things that we’re most proud is how we’ve achieved this. And we’ve welcomed governing bodies from across the world to talk about some of the things that we’ve had a chance to do well. They come to talk about things like Team Canada, and a few of the other programs I’ll walk you through. But Team Canada has been one of the highlights of Golf Canada’s initiatives. Our high performance program set out a lofty goal. We wanted to have 30 Canadians on the PGA and LPGA tour by 2032, and we’re well on our way to achieving that. And I look to some of the other sports who’ve done incredible things, whether it’s in basketball with the Raptors’ 2019 win, the Blue Jays’ run to the World Series, some of our incredible tennis athletes who’ve won major championships. We have to have people to shoot for, our Olympians. We have to have people who are on the biggest stages, and that’s what we’re trying to do with Team Canada.
What you see on the side are a roster of 53 young men and women, boys and girls, who are dedicated to putting Canadian flags on leaderboards across tours around the world. There was an article earlier this week, it was a profile about our Golf Canada house that was in Arizona. We have two of them, and I know many of you are gonna be interested in booking these houses, as well. We put our Team Canada athletes up at these homes, and we give them a place to train, live together, work on their games, hone their craft, and do it in this competitive environment in a warm climate. We’ve got a house in Arizona, and a house in Florida that we’re doing that at. And many of you may know Sudarshan Yellamaraju. He’s now in the PGA Tour. He’s having a top 20 season so far, and he spent 190 days at the Canada House last year. So, we’re seeing some real evidence of this work coming through.
The next program that we’re incredibly proud of is the First Tee. It had a 20-year head start in the US. First Tee was an entry into the game for most people, for young kids, but it evolved into a life skills program that uses golf as a medium. We launched in 2021 with the help of our Golf Canada Foundation, and in 5 years, we have 280,000 kids participating in 6 chapters across the country. Clubs are going in kids’ hands, learning life skills, and the best part of this program is that over 60% of them don’t pay anything for this program. First Tee, as Bruno outlined, is making a real difference to kids’ lives. And the picture there of Nick Taylor, our recent First Tee ambassador, he saw it firsthand at his club in Abbotsford, British Columbia, kids coming to Abbotsford who had never had the chance to play before, becoming part of First Tee, and then going through the entire program. And he’s proud to keep the First Tee logo on his golf bag, when you see him at major championships this summer.
This also allows me to talk a little bit about one of the other real important areas of Golf Canada’s success, and that’s our Golf Canada Foundation. We’ve been able to find individuals, trustees and donors, who’ve decided that golf was their thing, and they want to make it more people’s thing. We’ve had a group of them become the Team Canada Council, people who were dedicated to seeing those Canadian flags on leaderboard, and they put meaningful investments and donations into this program—and that’s Sudarshan right there. These Golf Canada Foundation trustees have also supported First Tee. They started chapters across the country, and that’s really what has been igniting the spark in golf in this country.
I also want to talk to you about our big event strategy. And I know that so many of you in the room today join us on this strategy, and it’s grounded in our two main events, our PGA Tour event, the RBC Canadian Open, and the CPKC Women’s Open. Let me just talk about the RBC Canadian Open, because we’re gonna address it on the panel a little bit more. With the incredible support of RBC, this event has become one of the foundation events on the PGA Tour. 130,000 people will make their way to TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley in Caledon Ontario. They’ll experience sport and entertainment, a little bit of sport, a little bit of music, great food, maybe a couple drinks, family activities, social activities. This has become the start of summer. So, let me cordially invite you to the RBC Canadian Open, which is only about two weeks away. We also have the CPKC Women’s Open, which is the LPGA Tours, they call it their fifth major, or their sixth major, because they have five, but it’s the signature event in women’s professional sport. We’ll be at Royal Mayfair Golf Club this summer, and we look forward to welcoming the entire LPGA stars to the province of Alberta.
I’d like to talk to you a little bit about our off-course evolution. And it was mentioned at the outset, this has been one of the fundamental game changers of the sport. All of a sudden, another million players have come into this sport, and they’ve come to it in a variety of different ways. They come to learn for the first time with our partners at the PGA of Canada. They come to train some of our high-performance kids. They come for the entertainment, the social, the chicken wings, the beer. They come for this engagement. And our team at Golf Canada have put together an off-course strategy. Believe it or not, there’s 700 of these off-course venues in Canada. It’s becoming the way that people are engaging with the game, and it’s also stimulating the entire milieu of golf. We are so excited for this next sort of stage of this off-course moment that golf is experiencing.
And this sort of allows us to move into where our real passion for the last few years has been, about building a home for Canadian golf. We had an incredible, almost 50-year run at Glen Abbey Golf Club. It was Golf House, as we called it. It hosted incredible championships. But as we looked out to the next 50 years, we found a partner in the Humeniuk family at TPC Toronto, who donated land, and who provided an opportunity to build our new headquarters. So, we will be opening our home for Canadian golf officially at the RBC Canadian Open in two weeks. But what our team and the community are probably most excited about is we will be launching a 40,000 square foot community putting park in Caledon called Talon Links. This putting park will sit adjacent to our Golf Canada headquarters, available for free for the community to come out and play. It takes its history from the Himalayas of St. Andrews in Scotland, it’s dramatic mounds and humps and bumps. It’ll be a place for kids to learn the game and putting, and it’ll be a super fun way for people to have their first experience with the game and a lasting one at that. So, we’re so excited to share Talon Links with the entire community, and we already have plans for future putting parks across the country.
I also wanna talk about our government partnership—and we will extend this discussion, I’m sure, with Neil and with Jackie. But we’re having a moment here, with the Province of Ontario. For many years now, not just recently, the Province of Ontario has leaned in with every aspect of Premier Ford’s leadership. We have a partnership when it comes to infrastructure. We have a partnership when it comes to tourism. We have a partnership with the health of the game. But most importantly, we have a partnership in sport. And we’ve learned that a partnership, especially a private-public partnership like this, is really what’s put the sport on its shoulders. We are so grateful to the work that we’re gonna share with you today with the Province of Ontario, and we’re so enthusiastic about the federal government’s commitment to making sport part of nation-building going forward.
I wanna share with you that first scene that I painted at the beginning of the presentation, this group of high school kids together, but seemingly apart. We think that golf is the absolute antithesis of that. It’s the core of connection. We all seem to love sport, and we all definitely love golf. Golf is about that human connection, and those developing relationships. I am incredibly proud of the role that golf has played in helping to build that connection, and that bond with people. And I cannot wait to see what the near future is gonna bring, and all of you coming to golf and playing a ton. Thank you so much for your time today. I look forward to speaking further.
Saurabh Popat
Thank you, Bob. Thank you so much. Thank you so much, Laurence. We appreciate you sharing Golf Canada’s story. The future of golf in this country is very, very bright. As we’re transitioning to the panel, I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge some of the leaders here in the room today, including Minister Lumsden’s colleagues, including Ontario’s Minister of Transport, Prabmeet Sarkaria, thank you for joining us today, as well as the, Minister Lumsden’s Parliamentary Assistant for Sport, Natalie Pierre. Thank you both for joining us here today.
Now, Laurence, you gave us a sharp, real-world case study. It shows us what is possible when an organization adapts its business model to meet changing behaviours and expectations. Now, as we broaden the lens across the wider landscape of Canadian sport, our guests are here to talk about building resilient models for athletes and communities alike. Each of our panellists has been deeply involved in sport throughout their lives, bringing a wealth of firsthand experience and insight to today’s discussion.
Our moderator today is Christine Simpson, NHL Features Reporter for Prime Monday Night Hockey. It’s an exciting time with the playoffs at the moment, so thank you for joining us, Christine. Christine has spent more than three decades shaping sports broadcasting in our country. Her insights make her the perfect guide for this discussion. Joining her is the Honourable Neil Lumsden, Ontario’s Minister of Sport. Neal is a Canadian football legend and Hall of Famer, who brings decades of experience as an athlete, executive, and community leader. His perspective bridges the gap between grassroots recreation and high-performance athletics in our province. We’re also here joined today by Jacqueline Ryan, CEO of the Canadian Olympic Foundation, and Chief Brand and Commercial Officer at the Canadian Olympic Committee. Jacqueline is an award-winning leader, who has secured landmark corporate partnerships, and transformed Team Canada’s brand. She understands exactly how to build commercial success while keeping athletes at the centre. And of course, we welcome Laurence Applebaum to join the panel, as well, and some great pictures up here. So, please join me in welcoming Christine, Minister Lumsden, Jacqueline, and Laurence to the stage.
Christine Simpson, NHL Features Reporter for Prime Monday Night Hockey
Who would have thought those kids would one day be gracing the stage, here at the Empire Club? Boy, it is an absolute honour to be here and with this esteemed panel, talking about something that is so timely, you know, when you look at the future of business in sport and the evolution of it. A dear friend of mine, who actually used to be a colleague of mine when we worked together at SportsNet, John Shannon, who’s spent his entire life and career in the game of hockey, wrote a book a couple years ago. The title of his book was “Evolve or Die.” And that might sound a little dramatic, but I think it kind of encapsulates what the sport industry is going through, what I’m sure many of you in whatever industry you’re in is going through. If you don’t evolve, you’ll find yourself on the sidelines pretty quickly.
So, Laurence, that was a great presentation. I wanna maybe start this conversation around the fact, I think you called, you described, we’re coming into one of the most important transition periods for Canadian sport. So, for the minister, Neil, and for Jackie, I wonder if you could describe kind of what that means to each of you. What are the, maybe the biggest challenges, but the biggest opportunities, too, that you face when you look at sport in the next decade or so? Ladies first.
Jacqueline Ryan, Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Olympic Foundation; Chief Brand & Commercial Officer, Canadian Olympic Committee
Thank you.
The Honourable Neil Lumsden, Ontario’s Minister of Sport
Ladies first.
Jacqueline Ryan
Happy to chat about that. I mean, whether challenges or opportunities continue to be funding, they absolutely are. Incredibly thankful from the sports system, the federal government’s investment, 755 million over the next five years to the sports system, much needed funding. This will drive a profound impact in this room, in the sports system, broadly in Canada. There’s more work to do. There is definitely more work to do. We really need to make sure that the high-performance sport pipeline is well-funded, it’s sustainable. We need to make sure that there are more young people participating in sport, and really making sure that the sports system is safe, inclusive, and barrier-free, so more young people play sport, and more young people stay in sport. And playing is really about access and opportunity. Staying in sport is about creating conditions so the young kids want to stay and can afford to stay in sport.
So, there’s work to be done, and I think what’s happening now is there’s an incredible inflection point, where we have this amazing federal government funding, we’ve got the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Olympic Foundation, who are largely privately funded, and we’ve grown resources year-over-year, and have a really strong sustainable base. And then there’s the Future of Sport Commission, who’s released a really important findings about what the future of sport needs to look like. And I think bringing these three pieces together in a coordinated effort will absolutely drive a more efficient approach to the sport system, a more sustainable approach, and really create an incredible pathway for the next generation. So, really exciting time, for sure ahead.
The Hon. Neil Lumsden
I wanna clarify one thing, the picture of me, I was only 12. I was a bigger kid for my age. We talk about this a lot, and I have great staff, some of which are here with me. Natalie was identified, and Prab certainly gets it on all fronts, when we talk about sport. But you need the opportunity to participate. You need the places to go. And a couple years back, we identified, at least with respect to Ontario, and I would candidly say, you know—I’m not gonna point my finger at anybody, because it’s our responsibility now, and we’re happy to take it on—but sport locations and opportunities were aging out, because it didn’t seem to matter. That’s across a lot of sports. And if it ages out at that level, it also ages out on recreation. And if it’s not there on recreation, then there’s a problem with the health system long term. So, it’s all tied together.
So, we came up with a plan, and approached the Premier, and he was all over it, and the Finance Minister and the President of the Treasury Board, to secure a fund through the Community Sport and Recreation Infrastructure Fund. It was brand new, hadn’t been done before, and we had $200 million. And it was our first swing at making things better in Ontario. And I won’t take you into the weeds of it, but the process was for not-for-profit and for municipalities. And what I found out very quickly—and I kind of knew it anyways, because of years of coaching, and doing all that sort of stuff—is the recognition that these facilities were falling apart. Walking into a room built in 1972, and that wasn’t one or two, that was a lot. I used an example where I live now in Hamilton that—and I appreciate the Mayor of Hamilton changing her direction, but they were doing budgets, and they were thinking to close down in my riding of Hamilton East Stoney Creek Arena because they wanted to save $161,000. So, I responded as a few other people did, and she reversed her field on that. But that’s—and I’m not being critical of them or her, but that is how people look at, sport. Ah, yeah, it’s out there, it’s no big deal, they’ll find a field, whatever. To create opportunity like golf has done such a fabulous job, you need places to go, you need the place where people are gonna come together both as young athletes, male or female, and parents. And that starts the movement, if you will.
You can’t aspire to be something if you can’t experience it. It’s one thing to see an athlete, as I did as a young guy, and picked out on TV or met, and said, “I wanna be like him or her.” Well, that’s great, but if there’s no place for me to become that, where are we? So, we went real hard—and just to give you an idea, certainly, it was picked up and put down quickly, with respect to the first phase of the fund. We had 200 million, which is a lot of dough. Our request in the first intake was 1.175 billion, or give or take a few bucks. So, when you make people aware, and say there’s an opportunity, then they get off their duff and they try to make a difference. We’re gonna force that difference, and continue to, and thanks again to the Premier and Treasury Board, we have another 300 million, so that’s gonna come out, I think, be launched in the fall.
So, it’s about creating those opportunities and those platforms for young people to do it, before we say, “Yeah, they should be allowed to do it.” Well, you can’t play golf in the garage off the concrete—well, maybe once or twice in university, but normally not. So, when those opportunities are developed, and that’s one of our focuses, then the opportunity trickles to the young people, and that’s when it takes off. And the excitement we saw going out and doing announcements in communities, and one of the things for me that, you know, we’re out and about in the province a lot, and we talk about these things a lot, but when we go make an announcement for an arena for a million bucks, there isn’t a couple people, there’s like a hundred. Communities get it. And we don’t totally fund, but we are saying to the community, municipality, not-for-profit, get your plan together, come to the table, and we’ll put you over the top. So take the initiative, it’s not on us, don’t come to us for everything.
Christine Simpson
Yeah.
The Hon. Neil Lumsden
And I think that’s—and I just came from the Federal Provincial Territorial meetings, and Adam van Koeverden, the Secretary of Sport and I talked about this a while ago, that they’ve launched some dough. So, everyone’s kind of getting it now, and we just gotta maintain it. It can’t be a one-time thing, it has to be an all-the-time thing.
Christine Simpson
And you need a plan for that.
The Hon. Neil Lumsden
Yeah.
Christine Simpson
And Jackie, I wanna throw it back to you on that. I know the COC released their Team Canada 2035 Strategic Plan. Can you give us some insights into what that’s all about?
Jacqueline Ryan
For sure. Yeah. So, we launched this 10-year plan last year, it’s called Team Canada 2035. And what that is, is a $500 million investment in this new strategy. And it’s ultimately about ensuring that we fulfill our mission, which is to transform Canada through the power of sport. And at the Canadian Olympic Committee, we represent our members. Our members are Golf Canada, Canada Basketball, Canada Soccer, Tennis Canada, the list is long, I’m not sure who else is in the room, but our colleagues are here. And our job is to make sure that we accelerate the work that they’re doing, and help the athletes on the path to the Olympic Games.
And so, Team Canada 2035 is a very efficient investment in three very ambitious pillars. The first one is podium, and that’s all about, we are going to strive to be the top five nation, Canada, sorry, summer and winter combined in the world, relative to the medal tally. So, that’s a big, big ambition. Our second ambition is anchored under play, and that’s a commitment to strive to get a million more young people involved in sport. And the third pillar is planet. And that is to recognize that no sport is immune to climate change. And so, we have a climate action plan that will help do our part to preserve our backyards, and give the athletes the platform they really want to talk about the importance of climate change. So, that’s the strategy. It’s anchored in the fact that we’re ultimately trying to elevate the sports system. This is about being efficient, being coordinated with our colleagues, to really drive meaningful change, and drive funding. And it’s doing that to, again, ensure that the sports system is safe, inclusive, and barrier-free, so that ultimately, when the athletes stand on the podium, Team Canada reflects Canada. So, it’s a really important initiative for us. And again, it really coordinates well with everyone in the room, with the federal government funding, and with what Laurence was talking about in his presentation. These elements all work importantly together: podium, play, and planet.
Christine Simpson
We’ll delve into a little further on that. You know, when you think of Canada, I think we’ve always thought Canada is a hockey nation—which personally, I think it still is in many ways, but what a change. When you look at, you know, even from your presentation, Laurence, you know, what Brooke Henderson and Nick Taylor have done in golf, what Felix, Bianca, Dennis, Victoria are doing in tennis. The two-time MVP of the NBA is from Hamilton, Ontario. Who would have ever thought that, right?
The Hon. Neil Lumsden
I would.
Christine Simpson
Yes, of course you would. You knew it all along. And don’t get me started on women’s sports. Cheers to the Montreal Victoire, who are bringing the Walter Cup to Canada with their win last night. [Applause] We’ve all seen WNBA with the Toronto Tempo, the Northern Super League. The landscape is changing. So, I throw it out to all of you. As you’re talking about wanting to reach the younger audience, and the more diverse audience, how do you go about doing it? Can I throw that over to you to speak, Laurence?
Laurence Applebaum
Yeah. Well, thank you, Christine. And I just, you know, start off by saying, Golf Canada’s a proud member of the Canadian Olympic Committee. And in 2028, we’re so excited, because there will be a new team medal that will be entered into the competition, a male and female team event. And we’ve had two females who’ve participated in every Olympics since in 2016, 2021, and then in 2024, it was Brooke Henderson, and another Hamiltonian, Elena Sharpe. And then in this past Olympics, it was Corey Connors and Nick Taylor. And so, the idea that Brooke Henderson, potentially, and Corey or Nick, or another, will participate in the 2028 Games in LA is something that the entire community is excited about. But we are so passionate for all the sport participation. And the thing that really connects the three of us up on stage here is we have this passion for our sport, particularly in golf, and how it connects with the Olympic movement. And it’s done right here at home in Ontario so frequently. And so for us, that’s really the magic of what’s going on in sport, from our perspective.
Christine Simpson
Who else wants to jump in?
Jacqueline Ryan
I can jump in, and absolutely build on that. You know, from our perspective, as I mentioned with our new strategy, it’s ultimately about, imagine picturing sort of opening the aperture to sport, where right now, you know, it has been difficult to be able to enter the sport system for lots of different reasons. And so, our new strategy is all about opening the aperture to sport. So, really bringing in underrepresented communities that wouldn’t otherwise have access. And we really believe that the future of sport is anchored in participation, more participation. Sport that is more accessible, and affordable, and attainable, and available for every Canadian. So, there’s a lot of work to be done there, but we’re super committed to that.
And we’ve been, again, we’ve embarked on this new strategy about a year ago. And in those early discussions, we have an incredibly engaged marketing partner, and that’s Bell, who’s with us here today. And together we constructed a program called Bell Starting Line. And what that is, it’s all about, again, opening the aperture to allow communities who wouldn’t otherwise have access to sport to try their hand at sport. It aligns with, obviously, our strategy, it aligns with Bell’s strategy, which is all about ensuring that newcomers and underrepresented communities have access. So, we built this program together, and had a few events that ran last year, we’re gonna run this over the next couple of years. But the event we had in Montréal, we did it together with national sporting organizations, and provincial and community. With Speed Skating Canada, we brought out 100 kids to Montreal to try out skating for free, thanks to Bell. Coming out of that, they also got a free signup, to try it again in their community. And then they got to skate with their heroes, Charles Hamelin, and William Dandjinou, two Olympians. So, that’s the type of thing that we’re gonna keep doing more of, to make sure that we’re helping opening up the aperture to access to sport.
The Hon. Neil Lumsden
And we all have moments at different times, based on things that we are passionate about and that we care about, or people that we know they’re involved in care about, because they have extension. And a week ago, I can’t remember the day, because they just fall together, we’d had an announcement in Hamilton—not that this is all about Hamilton, but right now it is—the PWHL announced the team coming to Hamilton. And I think back, and a couple people have heard me say this, in my family, my two kids, both were really good athletes. One had a platform to continue on, and had the opportunity, where my daughter didn’t. She went so far, but then after that, there was no place for her. And as I said, good athlete. So, I always felt bad about that.
And I sat as part of the announcement at TD Coliseum in Hamilton, which is, the facility has been retrofitted, it is a phenomenal place to, concert sports, you name it. It’s gonna be a great home for the gals’ team. And when we sat up at the podium, all the young women’s teams were represented with some of their coaches. And then their parents were there. And seeing the look on their faces, and knowing that they now can think like I was thinking, and my son had the opportunity, and others did, to say, I can get there, and I can get there at home. It doesn’t have to be at home, I might have to go to Ottawa or Montréal, or Toronto—but my sport is now being recognized, and I have a pathway.
And then, the greatest part—and I wasn’t surprised, but they, as each team, Stony Creek Sabres was one of them, and the highest density of girls hockey is, by the way, is in our region. So, we were well represented. And they all got up, the captains, I guess, got up to say a few words. And these, one at a time, four young women got up. And I just, as I am now, looking out at the faces, and not that they were surprised, but they were impressed. These young women stood up there, spoke probably like—they’ve never been in that situation before. There’s a hundred plus people in there or more—plus the, meaning more—television cameras, all that stuff. And they knocked it out of the park. Unbelievable. That’s what we talk about when we’re creating pathways. Especially, we’re involved in Canadian women of sport, and a lot of others.
But that is a perfect example of a league that was looking outside the box a little bit, structured a little bit differently. But they’re, as the expression goes, kicking ass and taking names. And the expansion is awesome. And the best part for me was, all these young girls now had a chance that I had. And that’s what it’s all about. If those that come before don’t create the opportunity for those that are falling behind, we’re not doing our job. And that’s in everything, frankly.
Christine Simpson
Yeah. Agreed. That’s why you saw little Chris Simpson on the baseball diamond. Even though I had two hockey playing brothers, there were no girls’ hockey leagues for me as a kid. So, I’m particularly proud to see how much that has changed. And I know we’re still trying to get to some questions from the crowd, too, so I wanna skip to, as we’ve talked, the federal government announced the significant increase in sport funding recently, which signals just how much of a nation-building movement sport can be. I wanna get each of you to sort of from where you sit, how you see your sport and the world of sport in general, at a time when we could use all of the nation-building that we can, bringing people together, just how you go about doing that. Maybe, Laurence, I’ll start off with you.
Laurence Applebaum
Maybe, I just would talk about what people like being part of, and it alludes to the big event strategy that I talked about, which is, we like seeing the best in the world compete on home soil in Canada against our best athletes. And when we see that happening, I can as easily attend so many of these sport events, but in golf, when we had the best in the world at home playing against our best Canadians, that seems to do something special for us. And so, we wanna continue to encourage that as much as we can, in every format that we can.
Christine Simpson
M’hm (affirmative). Jackie?
Jacqueline Ryan
Yeah. I might add to that from a bit of a different angle, that we need to keep continuing to engage the private sector. So, the Canadian Olympic Committee is a not-for-profit. The Canadian Olympic Foundation is a registered charity. The COC is almost exclusively funded by our marketing partners. And the foundation almost is exclusively funded by some marketing partners and individual Canadians, nation builders. And these two groups are nation builders. They’re investing to accelerate the vision I just talked about. Team Canada 2035 aligns to their priorities, as well. I’ll mention RBC Training Ground, which is, RBC is here today, as well. And not only do they partner with the RBC Canadian Open, but RBC Training Ground is a talent ID program that’s all about supporting the path to the podium, so that athletes in Canada in the high-performance system can find their way. And the program is opening the aperture to communities across the country through new technologies, AI, and ensuring that underrepresented communities now also have access to the podium. So, we’re gonna continue to ensure that we have the private sector support that’s required to partner with public, and really drive these meaningful returns.
The Hon. Neil Lumsden
And just quick on that. The other thing that the RBC Training Ground does is it takes athletes from one sport and puts them in another opportunity, which is very unique. And it has done, I mean it has raised the level of competition in a lot of sports where it’s tough to recruit or find somebody because they’re a little bit older. So, that has been brilliant. I’ll take a quick economic swing at it that we have a fund in our ministry called Iconic. And it’s about identifying, through a process and a formula, of what economic impact does. And I’ve coached with Minister Fedeli, who does remarkable work in bringing businesses and companies to Ontario. And I say to him, yeah, it takes you a while to do that. Whereas what we do in over four or five days at the RBC Canadian Open is we generate as much economic impact as it takes you to build a building, and stuff. And I’m joking with him, but I’m also poking him in the chest verbally, saying, hey, we do a lot through sport to drive business, whether it’s a small tournament, or it is the Grey Cup, or the Honda Indy, or the RBC Canadian Open.
And I stood up, it was either last year or two years ago—and thank God you didn’t put any of my swings in that video, like, where’s the camera on the Pro-M, man? But, and we understand, and I stood up at the reception, and I often take the filter off, having not been in politics all my life with the last four-and-a-bit years, and think, okay, we’re gonna do what’s right and what’s best. And I challenged you, and said, there’s no reason for the RBC Canadian Open ever to leave Ontario. Like, end of story. And I was joking and smiling, but I was serious. And to that point, being serious, we’re proud to say today, and announce that we as the Ministry of Sport and our government will be supporting the RBC Canadian Open this coming year to the tune of $1.5 million again. Because we know what you do. [Applause] And we know what’s important.
And like I’ve said to many people before, we do things as well or better than anybody else on the planet. We just don’t like talking about it. And the tournament that this, the RBC Canadian Open is as good as any tournament anywhere, execution-wise, golf, fans, volunteers, and driving revenue back to our province, and those that work in our province, and those volunteer, that know it’s important to step up, when it comes time for the tournament. Because they draw something. I mean, I bumped into a guy at the tournament last year, and I saw him in Hamilton. And he said, hey, remember me? I saw you in the—yeah, I do actually remember you. He said, I’ve been doing it for years. I did it in Hamilton. The community that’s generated through sport, even on the volunteer side, which is so very important, when it comes to, if you think about it, grassroots coaching, where are they? They’re all volunteers. And you transform that into a whole new level. You take great care of them. And we’re proud to be part of what you are doing, and continuing to put us on the economic impact map, when it comes to sport. Plain and simple.
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Christine Simpson
Great partnership. I know I need to wrap up, but there is one question that came through the QR code, and it really is for Laurence.
The Hon. Neil Lumsden
Good.
Christine Simpson
So, I feel it’s appropriate that he ends our panel discussion. It’s from Andrew—he didn’t use his last name. And the question is: I just turned 65, am I too old to start playing golf?
The Hon. Neil Lumsden
No.
Laurence Applebaum
Well, that’s nice that we have an online viewer, of course. I was worried that it was my brother masquerading an online question.
Christine Simpson
I was just wondering.
Laurence Applebaum
But no, I think that’s the beauty of this game. The beauty that we’ve talked about is that you can—it’s incredible the number of people who started a little bit later in the game, and picked up the bug, and picked up this very positive addiction to the sport. And, you know, he’s got 35 more years, at least ahead of him, so all the power.
Christine Simpson
There you go. Andrew, you’re good, you’re good. Thank you so much for the discussion. Thank you, Laurence, Jackie, and Neil, and thank you so much for listening. Hope you enjoyed our conversation.
The Hon. Neil Lumsden
Great job, as always. It was great to see you.
Note of Appreciation and Concluding Remarks by Saurabh Popat
What an incredible discussion, incredible panel of great sports leaders. We’re very fortunate to have you here today. Thank you, Christine, Minister Lumsden, Jacqueline, and Laurence. Another round of applause, please, for the far-great leaders. Your discussion here today gave us a clear view of the hard choices required to sustain sports in our country. We truly appreciate your practical insights and your shared commitment to athletes and communities. Together, I think we’re up to the test. And thank you to our Lead Sponsor, BDO Canada, and all of our wonderful sponsors for making this event possible, and everyone here today for taking part in this important conversation. I hope that your golf game this season is much better than mine.
And I’d also like to take a moment to recognize the young students and young leaders joining us here today. Their presence is actually made possible by the charitable arm of the Empire Club Foundation, and the generosity of our donors. To stay connected, please subscribe to our newsletter by scanning the QR code on your tables. And I hope that you’ll join us for two exciting upcoming events.
On Friday, May 29th, we examine how our province can lead in the global AI economy as part of Toronto Tech Week. This event features the launch of the Council of Ontario University’s AI Task Force Report, and a panel from the University of Waterloo, Open Text, and the Vector Institute. They will discuss the concrete actions required to turn this technological shift into sustained growth and productivity. And then on June the 4th, we welcome Lieutenant-General Michael Wright, Commander of the Canadian Army, to discuss forging the land forces of our country’s needs. The commander will outline how the private and public sectors must collaborate to modernize our defence and protect our sovereignty. He will be joined by defence experts and a moderator from Council Public Affairs to explore our new Defence Industrial Strategy. Tickets for both events are on sale now. And finally—and perhaps, of particular interest to our audience today—we are incredibly excited to announce the inaugural Empire Club Golf Tournament on June 2nd, at the legendary Glen Abbey Golf Course. Join us for a fantastic day on the course with TSN’s Bob Weeks, where all net proceeds will support the Empire Club Foundation, and empower our next generation of leaders, and perhaps golf pros, as well.
As always, and as a club of record, all Empire Club events are available to watch and listen to on our website. And the recording of today’s event will be available very shortly. Thank you all for being part of this important conversation here today. Enjoy the networking reception and this meeting is now adjourned. Take care.
